Mauresmo, who has slipped down the rankings since she won the Australian Open and Wimbledon titles in 2006, dominated the world number five and sealed victory after 67 minutes when the Serbian hit a backhand into the net with the court open.

Ivanovic, who was briefly the world’s top ranked player last year, has struggled at the Brisbane tournament and her performances have placed question marks over her Australian Open credentials.

The 21-year-old, who lost last year’s final at Melbourne Park to Maria Sharapova, saved two match points in her match against Italian qualifier Roberta Vinci on Wednesday and also struggled in her first match against Petra Kvitova.